pennies are so tacky!?

theng is coming over for dinner tonight. i love cooking for friends and ever since going to spitzer's corner a couple weekends ago, i've been wanting to try cooking mussels with chorizo. since i had the whole day off, i decided to venture out to chinatown for groceries. food shopping turned into a 4 hour ordeal (probably didn't help that i took the bus all the way back uptown)!! chinatown, trader joes, whole foods, agata & valentina, and wine store!

mott has a ton of little seafood and produce stalls. i picked up mussels and greens at one food vendor. tomatoes, red bell pepper, and red onion from another. more greens from another. frozen minced lemongrass and clam juice from a vietnamese grocery store. was still missing zuchini, fennel, baby clams, bread, and e.v.o.o. (yes, i'm obnoxious like rachel ray and like to abbreviate that!).

walking down grand i saw the duck and bbq pork hanging from the restaurant window. it looked delicious and i couldn't resist but stop in to buy a pound. i asked for a pound and went to pay. the little old woman (l.o.w.) muttered something in cantonese.

v: duo shao qian? (how much in mandarin)

l.o.w.: si kuai liu mao. (four dollars and sixty cents)

i pulled out a five and started counting change. i gave her the five and she gave me a one as i continued to dole out change. when i put a quarter, three dimes, and five pennies in her hand she balked and started ranting in chinese.

v: what? why can't you take the change?

l.o.w.: no tax. i can't take pennies.

v: why can't you take pennies??

l.o.w.: pennies are so tacky.

v: i gave you five sixty. what's wrong with that?

another employee stood nearby and i spoke to her.

v: why can't she take pennies?

a.e.: no tax for you.

v: ok, that's fine. but why can't she take pennies?

l.o.w.: give me that dollar back.

v: i don't understand why you won't take the pennies? it's the right change!

l.o.w. grabs the dollar back and gives me forty cents back.

a.e.: no tax for you.

i left being pissed off and thoroughly confused. . did i miss something? when did pennies become bad? and what does that have to do with not being taxed?